Aluminum Flywheel

David, sorry you kind of got me upset. Over the weekend I realized I did leave out one important piece of information regarding the transmission.

When the transmission was out of the car my mechanic opened it up and inspected the syncho's and manually moved the transmission through all of the gears. He said everything looked great and the fluid was clear and free of shavings.
 
David, sorry you kind of got me upset. Over the weekend I realized I did leave out one important piece of information regarding the transmission.

When the transmission was out of the car my mechanic opened it up and inspected the syncho's and manually moved the transmission through all of the gears. He said everything looked great and the fluid was clear and free of shavings.

you can't visually inspect the syncros. You need to take feeler gauges and check clearances to verify sufficient material is on the blockers. Sorry to hear of your issues. Note that 2nd gear in mine started having shifting issues not long after purchasing. These things just eventually wear out. The fiber blockers are wear surfaces, and as such are prone to eventually wearing out.
 
you can't visually inspect the syncros. You need to take feeler gauges and check clearances to verify sufficient material is on the blockers. Sorry to hear of your issues. Note that 2nd gear in mine started having shifting issues not long after purchasing. These things just eventually wear out. The fiber blockers are wear surfaces, and as such are prone to eventually wearing out.

I believe mine are brass
 
Here are pics of the Mcleod Flywheel.

Notice it is reiveted and not bolted like yours.

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Thanks Ricardo.

I finally tore mine apart and no one would have ever guessed what my rattle was. I'll let the video tell the story.

 
Whats stopping it from spinning all the way around? It looks like it hits stops from time to time.
 
I cannot imagine that those three litte bolts are the only thing that secures the ring gear to the aluminum part. When the starter spins it it puts alot of force in it. On mine you can see that when force is applied is not just the reivets that keep the ring from spinning but the tabs that are embeded on the aluminum. You should have something similar in design. If you chewed up the aluminum then that flywheel is fubar, you could probably weld the alum and recondition it. But we will know better when it comes off.
 
That makes more sense but notice how when you spin it in the video it goes ding, ding from side to side, like it hits something. I dont think a press fit is the best design for it and should be brought up to them. YOu could repair yours in a similar way that the MCloed make theirs.
 
>I dont think a press fit is the best design for it and should be brought up to them

You do know that press fit ring gears are standard/common across the industry - saves from having to replace an entire flywheel if the gear teeth get chewed - mostly done back when the driver could turn the ignition key and engage the starter w/the engine running.
 
Holy cow. Clutch came off easy, but it looked like the flywheel was attached with an impact. All 6 holes had gouges around the bolts. Took forever to get them off. Now my problem is the flywheel is firmly planted on the crank.

I don't think a prybar is a good idea because it could damage the thrust bearing. So I am thinking some heat to get the aluminum to expand.

Opinions:
1. should the flywheel bolts been installed or removed with a impact?
2. best way to get this flywheel off the crank?
 
They should be torqued in a x cross pattern.
Use a rubber mallet and hit it in different spots near the edge till it comes off. Like a stuck wheel on the hub.
 
Try a least forceful method first.......spray it with some WD-40 or similar lubricant then tap it lightly on opposing edges with a rubber mallet.
 
Opinions:
1. should the flywheel bolts been installed or removed with a impact?
2. best way to get this flywheel off the crank?

An impact should never be used for any fastener attached to the crankshaft. I'd be suspicious of those flywheel bolts. If when put on, the wrong bolts were used, the flywheel may have had movement which caused the worn holes.

This thread documents the bolts required. They require a special shoulder bolt and I could only find the right ones direct from Ford.
http://www.sccoa.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23466&highlight=flywheel+bolts

To get it off, tap it until it pops off. I'd replace the pilot bearing as well. You can try a block of wood if you don't have a rubber mallet. Just use care.
 
Holy cow. Clutch came off easy, but it looked like the flywheel was attached with an impact. All 6 holes had gouges around the bolts. Took forever to get them off. Now my problem is the flywheel is firmly planted on the crank.

I don't think a prybar is a good idea because it could damage the thrust bearing. So I am thinking some heat to get the aluminum to expand.

Opinions:
1. should the flywheel bolts been installed or removed with a impact?
2. best way to get this flywheel off the crank?


My flywheel didn't have big enough holes drilled for the six bolts. Seems like the bolt would drop in a little bit, then the shoulder of the bolt would get caught on the flywheel before the head ever bottomed out. I caught this while trying to install the flywheel and had to use a drill press to slightly enlarge each hole. I bet if I had just put one hell of an impact on, I could have smashed the bolts through the holes. But it would put a lot of stress on the flywheel. I wonder if the stress could have caused some kind of relief from the pressed on ring gear. And it certainly could have caused the center of the flywheel to really bite onto the crank.

Check those bolts and the flywheel holes for any smashing or deforming.
 
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